Computers are becoming an increasingly popular mechanism for presenting media content information, such as audio information and video information. For instance, a user can receive content information from a remote source using a personal computer in the user's home that is coupled to the remote source via a network. The user may receive the content information as a complete file or in piecemeal streaming fashion. Alternatively, if the computer includes a tuner mechanism, the user may receive content information from conventional broadcast sources (such as cable or satellite sources) by tuning to these sources. The user may forward such content information to one or more appropriate playback devices in the home, such as a television or stereo system. Microsoft Corporation's Media Center technology provides one exemplary suite of tools for receiving and presenting media content information in the above-described manner. Using other tools, the user may couple multiple playback devices in the home into a presentation network. The user can then transfer media information from one device to another within the home. Universal Plug and Play (UPnP) technology provides one suite of tools for conveniently setting up such a home network.
While these developments offer many interesting enhancements over the conventional presentation of media information, they also present a number of new challenges. For instance, in addition to transmitting media content information between computers, it may also be necessary to transmit control information. For instance, a host device may forward control information that instructs a receiving device how it should process the media content information. This can become problematic in a networked environment. For instance, networking and processing anomalies may result in cases where the receiving device receives media content information without its associated control information, or vice versa.
There is accordingly a need for more efficient techniques for transmitting control information in any environment, such as the above-described media presentation environment.